Euro under pressure as Athex falls at open; more downbeat data from Greece

The euro is under pressure after the plunge on the Athens stock market. 

The Greek market has recovered from its 23% drop, but is still down 19.25%. Banks, inevitably, are the worst performers:

Having traded as high as $1.099 earlier, the euro is now down at $1.0973, although losses were pared by the reasonably positive manufacturing data for the euro area as a whole.

Research institution Markit said earlier that Eurozone manufacturing expanded solidly in July, despite Greek slump, with July PMI at 52.4, compared with 52.5 in June.

Meanwhile, fresh economic data from Greece indicated wide contraction.

Greece's manufacturing sector fell to 30.2 points according to Markit’s montly purchasing managers index, the worst performance since the company started compiling the data in 1999. Anything below 50 is a sign of contraction.

The country’s economic sentiment index fell steeply to 81.3 points in July from 90.7, according to the Institute for Economic and Industrial Research - the lowest reading since October 2012.

The effect of capital controls could not be fully assessed since they have not been removed yet, said the institute, but they would add a further burden to an already struggling economy.

Greece is seeking to totally lift the controls by October, or by the end of 2015 at the latest, Deputy Prime Minister Yannis Dragasakis said in an interview with Real News published Sunday.

That will depend on lawmakers approving the new bailout deal, on an increase in liquidity from the ECB and the recapitalization of Greek banks without recourse to a bail in of deposits.